To End an Era
by Of Healing Love
Summary: "You've never seen her smile, have you? It's the most beautiful thing in the world." Crying, Lucy met Natsu's gaze. "It's hard not to fall in love with that smile. How can you claim she is yours when she's never smiled for you?" Rage emanated from the king. "You will hold your tongue," Rogue spat angrily. "When she is my queen, she will smile."
1. To End an Era

_Just a little one-shot. It's kind of smutty, but there's no rape or even sex._

_Warning: There are very recent spoilers in this fic. If you're not caught up, don't read unless you don't mind spoilers. This story is canon-compliant up til the most recent episode as of July 29th, 2014 (Episode 192.)_

_Enjoy!_

* * *

**To End an Era**

He had killed her future self and he was still set on killing _her_.

All because she would and now had closed the gate, thanks to Yukino's help. She had said she wouldn't do so, but now it made sense that because her future self hadn't closed the gate there had been ten thousand dragons to destroy the world.

Because of her there were only seven and while that was much more manageable, it didn't really feel like it. These dragons were impenetrable from every magic attack and while they were under the future Rogue's control, there was little anyone could do to stop them. Even if the dragons weren't hell-bent on the destruction of the human race, under Rogue's dragon tamer magic, there was no reasoning with them to stop the destruction.

Oh, the destruction. So much had already been destroyed, turned to little more than rubble and broken stone. At least the Princess had had the frugality to evacuate Crocus, but if they couldn't stop Rogue and his dragons here, it wouldn't matter where anyone had gone—the world was doomed.

Lucy, Natsu, and the whole of Fairy Tail were determined to stop it. They would do anything and everything in their power to bring an end to the killing.

Unfortunately, anything and everything wasn't enough.

* * *

Dressed in a shimmery black gown with red filigree stitched into the fabric, Lucy contemplated not for the first time if she could ever get away with poisoning her king's wine.

Not for the first time, she abandoned the thought because the punishment for the attempt on his life _wouldn't_ be death.

No, Rogue had much worse penalties for insubordination.

It had been three years since the destruction of ninety-five percent of the human race and the complete obliteration of every city in not only Fiore but the entire world. The remaining five percent of humans still alive had been relocated to build a city to Rogue's liking and now inhabited the grim place working as little more than slaves to his will. All but four mages, including Rogue himself, still lived—herself, for reasons she hadn't had confirmed even now and never wanted to think about, Natsu because Rogue respected the dragon slayer's attempt at victory, and Zeref, who was still missing.

Lucy didn't think Rogue had any reason to want to kill Zeref, who had indirectly brought about his victory over the world. Natsu, the boy she had been in love with since their victory over the Neo-Oracion Seis in the Infinity Clock incident, was locked away in the deepest pits of the dungeon beneath the castle in which she, the other servants, and Rogue lived.

Lucy had wondered long and hard as to why Rogue kept around of the the people who almost succeeded in stopping him, but in the end she had decided she didn't want to know. Just the fact that he would occasionally touch her inappropriately—nothing incredibly overwhelming, but a hand wandering around her waist or fingers sifting through and lightly gripping the locks of her blonde hair when she bent over to serve his meals was telling enough. She supposed she was a kind of eye candy for him, a beautiful servant whom he could take advantage of at any time should he so wish.

She could only be grateful that even in these three years—although she had been on the run for one and a half of them—he had nothing done more than pull her into his lap once while taunting her about his victory over Fairy Tail. When she finally burst out into tears, he'd sent her away in irritation.

He still found amusement in brandishing his victory in front of her like a prize, but over time she had perfected a mask of indifference and the attempts to hurt and anger her had lessened as he grew bored of her unresponsiveness.

Lucy made a much better servant-slave than she could ever feel proud of. She followed his every command, often threatening her beloved Natsu's life in the beginning when she refused to listen. Now she just did it automatically, finding that existence was much better when her king was pleased and in a good mood. The slightest amount of disobedience would turn his mood foul and that was when Rogue was the most dangerous. He still had six dragons under his command, the Jade dragon having been defeated by Natsu just before the war had been lost.

How pitiful that they had only managed to defeat one of seven dragons even with all of their combined efforts.

Picking up the gold-plated tray with Rogue's meal and customary glass of red wine, Lucy made her way from the kitchen up the stairs to the throne room. The throne room was large and ornate, but for what purpose other than gloating his victory to his 'subjects', Lucy couldn't really fathom. A red strip of carpet went down the center of the room from the front entrance, over the steps, and finally ended at the obsidian throne with gold armrests and a plush crimson seat. The rest of the place was drearily made with dark gray stone and a few candelabras lit the way. The servant door opened to the back of the room from the right wall and this was where Lucy stepped out into the throne room.

Rogue wasn't there.

Lucy frowned slightly before assuming that Rogue must have been in the library. However, upon going through the winding halls and reaching the library, which was just as gloomy as the rest of the castle with dim lighting and black, red, and gold accents, Lucy found that he wasn't there, either. Her king often enjoyed widening his knowledge with forbidden books that had been procured from the rubble of his destruction.

That left only one place that he would be and Lucy had never been there before. It was his room and she had never been allowed or wanted to enter that domain, but if Rogue was there around suppertime, then he obviously expected her to find them there.

Grimacing, Lucy began the three-story trek up the winding flights of stairs to the top level of the castle, where Rogue's room was and where she had never been allowed to go before.

Tentatively, she pushed the door open from the stairwell to the king's living room. The place was spacious with soft blood red furniture, more lighting than most of the castle combined, and filled with even more books that she supposed he didn't want in the library due to whatever was in them. There was a cherry wood coffee table in the center of the living room and an empty glass was there, but unfortunately, Rogue wasn't anywhere to be seen.

Cautiously moving further into the room, she noticed a several doorways leading to unknown locations. One had been slightly left open, much to her relief, and she decided it would be safest to check that room first. Also, her arms were aching from carrying the heavy tray for such a long distance and she was eager to reliever herself of the cooling food. She hoped that Rogue wouldn't be upset with her for the now-room temperature meal.

She knocked on the wood loudly enough to be heard and beckoned inside. She heard Rogue's low voice come to her through the crack and she nudged the door open with her foot before entering.

The room was by far the most lavish in the castle. She had explored most of the place during her residence there, but she had never been to the third floor. Rogue had similar touches of his signature colors in this room as well—his bed's four-poster frame was made of polished ebony and had dark red blankets with silver sheets. The wardrobe was also made of the same ebony as well as the rest of the furniture. The room seemed almost antique in a way, especially compared to the way that things had been before Rogue's conquering of the world.

"I have your dinner, your Majesty," she said quietly, approaching the bed on which he was reclining with a book.

"Set it there," he replied dismissively, waving his hand towards the nightstand to his right. Lucy nodded obediently and set the tray there, already glad for the relief her arms received from relinquishing the tray.

It was only when she backed away that she noticed Rogue's eyes settled on her with keen interest. She felt her skin crawl at his inspecting gaze and averted her eyes demurely.

"Come here," he murmured. Startled, Lucy looked up at him. His red eyes were fixed intently on her, the contemplative expression on his face frightening her.

However, Lucy knew she couldn't deny him. She couldn't tell his current mood from what she had gleaned of him so far, but it was better not to test him. Reluctantly, she approached the side of his bed until she was within reaching distance.

Long fingers reached forward and grasped her bicep. She flinched at his cold touch but otherwise did not respond, too afraid of angering him. A slight jerk was enough to pull her front over the tall bed's edge, powerful as he was, and she felt fear fill her.

"Your Majesty-?"

"Hush," he said, and dragged her more onto the bed after discarding his book. Trembling now but knowing there was nothing she could do although terror was freezing up her limbs, Lucy allowed herself to be pulled onto the bed.

As soon as she was fully on the bed, he yanked her forcefully under her and Rogue was all at once on top of her.

Brown eyes wide, she let out a frightened shriek, but the disapproving look in his eyes quieted her. She knew deep down there was nothing she could do—there had been nothing she could do since he had taken over the world—but she still squirmed uncomfortably beneath him.

Rogue's eyes narrowed and Lucy forced herself to stop, staring at him fearfully but not breaking eye contact. She couldn't look away even though she wanted to.

"You don't know how long I've wanted this," he said softly, and before Lucy could protest, he sealed his lips over hers.

She was paralyzed by the sudden action.

At first the kiss was chaste, his lips only pressing insistently against hers. Frozen, Lucy could do nothing but stare at him with terrified eyes.

If he wanted her _that way_, she couldn't do a thing about it. Punishment wasn't a swift as death anymore—there was pain, fear, and torture involved before she _might_ be lucky enough to be blessed with execution.

It hadn't occurred to her only once that death would be a reprieve from the life she now lived.

When she didn't respond, he ran his tongue over the seam of her lips and although Lucy didn't have much experience with this, instincts told her he wanted her to open her mouth. However, she couldn't bring herself to do it, even as terrified of him as she was.

Rogue nipped her lower lip, tugging in between his teeth and sucking on it. She inhaled sharply through her mouth and he took his as invitation to invade her further. His tongue slipped past her lips and touched hers, forcing it to tangle with his as he explored her mouth.

She was shaking now, tears threatening to gather in her eyes. She couldn't stop him. His tongue was searching every inch of her mouth and his lips moved against hers persistently, as though encouraging her to respond.

She couldn't.

All of a sudden he pulled away, panting heavily. It was then that she noticed a bulge against her thigh and she realized what his intentions were.

"Why do you deny your king?" he hissed and she realized she had angered him by her inability to respond to his advances. Her lower lip quivered and she averted her teary eyes, ready for punishment.

"_Why?_" he growled, gripping her chin and forcing her to look at him. "Have you been oblivious this entire time to my interest in you? Do you not understand why you are treated so _kindly_?"

Lucy felt two hot tears leak from her eyes. "I-I can't-"

"You _will_," he insisted, fury leaking into his tone, and then his lips attacked hers again, this time forcefully and punishingly. He pushed past her lips against and kissed her ferociously, gripping her hair tightly and twisting. She whimpered in pain, but the noise only served to spur him on. His knee parted her thighs and he pressed his groin into her. She began to cry weakly, protesting against his mouth.

His hand found her breast and kneaded and at last she found her breaking point. She shoved against him, detaching her lips from his and letting out a ragged sob.

Rogue growled lowly in the back of his throat and got off of her. He all but shoved her off the bed and she felt to the floor, still crying.

"Leave me," he spit out, clearly furious.

Lucy staggered to her feet and fled the room.

* * *

The next three days were spent treading lightly around him as she brought him his meals, the same routine as always not wavering. Rogue made no further advances on her, but the heavy weight of his glare on her every time she entered the room was enough to make her tremble. Once, she spilled his wine from the abject fear flowing in her veins and had been forced to clean up the mess before getting him another.

He hadn't spoken to her since the day he had made his most forward advance yet, but on the fourth day he told her, "You _will_ give yourself to me in time."

Lucy did not attempt to deny it, even though it would not be _giving _herself to him—she knew he would simply take it eventually. She would never say yes to him, not while her heart lay with Natsu in his cold, dank prison. She would not give herself to someone she did not love and she would never love the man who had killed all her friends, her entire family. There was nothing available to him but hatred and resentment.

On the fifth day, Lucy served Rogue his breakfast. It seemed his willingness to force her had renewed and he had pinned her up against the throne room wall and kissed her harshly, bruising her lips with the force of his kiss. Again she denied him and again he sent her away in a fury.

This time, she ran to the dungeons, even though she wasn't permitted to be there. None of the other servants stopped her, although they sent her pitying looks, and it occurred to her that they, all older than her by at least a decade, had known what she had wanted to deny all along.

Rogue had always wanted her. That was why he had tracked her down himself and brought her back to the castle in chains, only to have her dressed in the finest of clothing available and given only the task of serving him his meals three times a day. She had clearly been favored above the other servants and she had always wondered why none of them envied her for her easy, lush position in the castle.

It was now clear why. Everyone hated their king, but those unwilling to submit had been eliminated and made examples of. No one dared to stand against him now—especially with six dragons all under his control. If one was lucky, their corpse wouldn't be fed to a hungering dragon.

She quietly but quickly made her way down to Natsu's cell. She had been told of its whereabouts by Rogue the second day she had been there and shown to its location, just to taunt her and make her realize the futility of her situation. She had not returned since then, afraid of the repercussions, but she needed this. Lucy had never been so terrified in her life.

Even though it had been a year and a half since she had been there, she had no trouble remembering where Natsu lay, wasting away in the strongest magic-resistant shackles known to the human race. They were forged of dragon scales, Rogue had said, and they would be immune to any of his attempts to escape.

"Natsu," she whispered as she approached his cell. There he lay, dressed in rags but left with his dirtied, no longer white scarf.

He seemed to be unconscious and Lucy felt more tears prick her eyes at his state. He was emaciated and thin, all his previous muscle tone gone to reveal thin arms that probably couldn't even lift the shackles binding him to the wall and floor. He was dirty and reeked of blood, sweat, and excrement. Despite the horrid smell, Lucy refused to cover her nose, not wanting to disgrace him any more than he already was.

The rise and fall of his chest increased, however, and her breath hitched.

"Natsu, it's me," she said, her voice cracked with a suppressed sob. "Natsu, it's Lucy."

A singular eye cracked open. His hair was matted to his face, but when she saw that dark brown eye, she let out a relieved sob. "Hey, Luce," he croaked, his voice raspy with disuse. A parody of a smile lifted his lips. "What took you so long?"

Lucy was unable to respond through her tears of relief and emotional turmoil. Even after all of this, Natsu was still himself, still strong and unrepentant for his part in attempting to defeat Rogue.

"Natsu…" she finally choked out. "I don't know what to do. I-I don't know what to do."

"I…don't know what you should do." He cleared his throat to accustom himself to speak. "But I know," he cleared his throat again, "I know that you _shouldn't_ give up."

"How can you say that?" she begged of him, desperate to know how he kept going. "They're all gone. We have no way to fight back. There's nothing I can do…"

Natsu watched her, simply listening.

"He wants me!" she finally admitted. It wasn't what she wanted to talk to Natsu about after all this time away from him, but it weighed on her enough that she could think of nothing more than drawing support from her best friend, her first love, her _only _love. "He wants me and I don't know what to do!"

Natsu's brow furrowed, but Lucy knew that he somehow knew what she was talking about.

"Keep fighting," he said at last. "There's always a way, always…we just have to find it."

Suddenly, there were footsteps. Lucy heard only one set of them and she knew for a fact that the servants came down here in pairs, so immediately she could only think that they were Rogue's. If he found her down here…

"I love you," she whispered, and Natsu's only open eye widened slightly. It was then that she noticed his other eye was swollen shut. "I'll be back."

Then she rushed for the shadows as quickly and quietly as possible. Natsu's cell was at the end of the hallway and there was nowhere to hide but in the darkness.

From her vantage point, she saw that she was right—it was Rogue.

"Talking to yourself again, Dragneel?" the white-and-black haired man taunted.

Natsu was silent.

"I've been waiting for you to go insane," Rogue told him. "But you seem to have a stronger will than I anticipated."

No response.

"Perhaps this will help," the king went on. "Lucy is now mine. How does it feel that your woman has betrayed you?"

Lucy stifled her gasp. Natsu loved her? No—Rogue was probably just making things up. To what end, she wasn't sure, but Rogue had a twisted mind she would never understand.

Finally, Natsu spoke. "Lucy is her own person. She doesn't belong to anybody, not me and definitely not you."

"Brave words for someone who will never see her again whereas I see her _every day_. You hold onto your love for her even when she belongs to someone else?" Rogue clearly ignored Natsu's statement of Lucy's independence.

"Even if she belonged to you…which she doesn't," Natsu replied in his raspy voice, "At least I knew her when she was her own person, when she was true to herself…when she was _happy_."

There was a low growl from Rogue.

"You've never seen her smile, have you?" Natsu laughed softly, although his voice cracked from the sudden use of it for an extended period of time. "You've never _really _seen her smile. It's the most beautiful thing in the world." Suddenly, Natsu's only open eye glanced in her direction furtively and Lucy met his gaze. "It's hard not to fall in love with that smile."

Tears trickled from Lucy's eyes, but she wasn't sure if they were from happiness or the breaking of her heart.

Natsu went on, even as Rogue stood there stiffly, rage emanating from him. "How can you claim she is yours when she's never smiled for you?"

"You will hold your tongue," Rogue spat angrily. "When she is my queen, she will be happy."

Lucy wished she could tell him how impossible that was, but she wouldn't dare reveal her position. She was certain that Rogue didn't want anyone other than the incapacitated Natsu to know any of what he was saying.

Natsu said nothing more, closing his eye and slumping back against the dank prison wall. Rogue seemed to lose interest in the pink-haired dragon slayer and stalked down the hallway away from the prison cell.

After she was certain he was gone, Lucy crept back to Natsu's cell. She whispered his name, but he didn't respond, and from the steady rise and fall of his chest, she realized he was asleep. All the talking must have exhausted him.

Smiling fondly at him, she left the prison and made sure to change dresses to hide grime on the dress she had been wearing previously and to remove Natsu's scent from her.

* * *

She should have known that Rogue's discussion with Natsu would spur him on to move more quickly in his seduction of her.

Lucy found Rogue again in his bedroom that night, unlike the other nights after his initial attempt, and she knew that nothing good was going to come of this. However, she steeled herself and entered his room with his permission.

She chanted Natsu's words like a mantra in her head: _'Don't give up. Keeping fighting.'_

As soon as she had placed the tray on the nightstand, Rogue spoke.

"Come here."

She knew what was going to happen and she wouldn't let it. "I have to go to the bathroom…" she said softly. "And I-"

Rogue sniffed once and she realized he was smelling her for a lie. Unfortunately, he found it.

"Come _here,_" he commanded, and she flinched. That was it—she had to comply.

She tried once more. "I'm tired…" It wasn't a lie this time.

An unforgiving glare from him made her take a deep, frightened breath and approach the bed.

Again, he pulled her onto the bed and trapped her beneath him. She was panting in fear and it displeased him. "Calm down," he demanded.

"Please…don't," she pleaded. "Please-"

He cut her off with a vicious kiss.

She didn't fight as he plundered her mouth, knowing it wouldn't get her anywhere. But when his mouth left hers and trailed down her jawline towards her neck, she stiffened and felt familiar tears prick her eyes. Rogue pulled away the neckline of her dress and focused on her pulse point, suckling harshly and nipping to draw small pockets of blood to the surface.

She would have red bruises the next day.

Then he bit down on her neck and she cried out, the bite unexpected. He ran his tongue over the mark gently as though to soothe it and she was almost hyperventilating as he let go of her dress's neckline and slid his hands under the lower hem of her dress.

When he fingered her lacy panties—the only ones she was allowed to wear and now she knew why—she flushed and tried to shove him off her. He resisted her attempt this time and crushed his chest against hers, trapping her hands between them.

"Please," she whispered. "Please!"

His lips met hers just as he touched her core through her panties.

She gasped into his mouth and he forced his tongue past her lips again. His rubbing against her core was gentle and teasing and she found that even though she hated it, it was building pressure in her abdomen. She whimpered at the almost uncomfortable feeling and this spurred him to remove his fingers and slip them past the flimsy silk barrier.

When he touched her directly, she let out an agonized moan of despair, hating the fact that she was reacting to him this way. He continued to tease her, touching her in a way she had never been touched by a man before. It sent shivers down her spine and she tried to push him off weakly again. He growled into her mouth and then pushed a finger inside her suddenly.

At the stretching pain, Lucy cried out weakly. He swallowed her cry with his mouth and began to move his finger slowly inside of her. Gasping and whimpering, she tried to dislodge him by bucking her hips, but it only made him groan.

Sweating profusely from terror and that horrid, slight arousal, she stilled, trying to think of a convincing argument to make him stop. However, the touch of his finger inside her made it hard to think, both from revulsion and the pleasure coming from the way he was tapping a particularly sensitive spot inside her.

Rogue pulled away and began to suckle her sensitive neck. She couldn't help but be glad for the chance to speak.

"Your Majesty, please," she begged, a soft whine elicited from her throat when he increased the pace within her. "Please stop…"

"Hush," he hissed and moved more quickly inside her, making her gasp against her will at the pleasure sparkling in her abdomen.

The feeling was building as he continued to assault her bundle of nerves and she let out a quiet moan of distress, but again he took it as acceptance. At the final, particularly target assault, she suddenly felt herself clenching around his finger and incredible pleasure rushed over her. She gave a strangle cry as she came, tears pouring from her eyes as she realized what had happened.

He was panting and he kissed her again, more passionately and tenderly than she would have expected. Lucy was too defeated to respond, much less fight, and waited him remove his fingers from her core. Tears streamed down her cheeks and she fisted her hands at her side, praying to whoever would listen that he would stop here.

Rogue pulled away slightly and resting his forehead against hers, still breathing heavily. She wondered with horror if he had been aroused by her reluctant reactions—she hoped not. However, all the signs seemed to be there.

When she felt him start to pull her panties away from her body entirely, not just nudging them aside, she grew frantic.

"Please, I'm so tired," she begged, hiccupping through her tears. Even if it would not stop it in the long run, just one more night without this torture would be enough for her—or so she hoped. However, she felt it was unlikely it would make a difference.

His hands paused in their descent.

"You will respond to me next time," he murmured calmly, not opening his eyes. "Full-heartedly."

Her crying intensified but she nodded in agreement. Just one more night…

"Tomorrow," he said, and it was a promise. She nodded again.

He returned her panties to her hips and got off her, but not without a final kiss. She relished that it would be the last time she would not have to kiss him back and then he dismissed her.

She left the room as quickly as she could and went to visit Natsu. He was still asleep and she simply cried in front of his cell, clinging to the bars as though they were him.

It was the last night before she had to give herself to the 'king.'

She would cherish it.

* * *

_Angsty, depressing, and smutty. Just what I'm good at._

_I was thinking about making this a chapter story, or at least a two- or three-shot, but I'm not sure. Depends on the reception. Up to you all and your reviews! I'm fine with leaving it the way it is._

_Ta!_


	2. To Give it All Away

_Very disturbing chapter. Just trust me when I say it isn't the last one by any means._

_Trigger warnings: Suicide (I'm going to leave it open ended whether it is an attempt or a success.)_

* * *

**To Give It All Away**

Hushed whispers.

"_Not until he's back."_

"_We can't do anything without Natsu."_

"_It's been too fucking long! If we can't do a damn thing without him, what good are our lives in the here and now?"_

"_We have to infiltrate the castle."_

"_Lucy can help."_

A voice of reason.

"_If we contact Lucy, it is possible she can aid us without us revealing our existence."_

Trembling lips form a teary smile.

"_I would give anything to see that she's safe. I'll find her."_

"_But she never leaves that damn castle and that place is guarded like the Council prison on fucking steroids!"_

"_I can disguise myself and find a way to infiltrate. No one has to see me."_

"_If you get caught, you're dead. We need you here. We'll have to send her a message or something."_

"_How do we know she won't think it's a joke? She's been stuck there for a goddamn year and a half. She's probably brainwashed like all the others."_

"_Never say that about my best friend! Lu-chan would never give up hope!"_

Young eyes, filled with the wisdom of someone much older, watch the group pensively.

"_I-I'm a healer. And now…he won't recognize me."_

The voice goes ignored.

"_I'm telling you, we should have told her about us and found her instead of letting her get fucking caught."_

"_We needed someone inside the castle. Besides, with the way that that bastard was chasing her, we would have given away our position just trying to talk to her."_

But she tries again.

"_I'm a healer! If there's any reason he would need one, I'd be perfect for the job! I don't have to heal with magic anymore…"_

A lull in conversation before the voice of reason speaks again.

"_He will not recognize her. Nothing changes one's looks like puberty. If we cut your hair and dye it with the walnut hulls around here…"_

"_I know exactly what you are talking about. It will make my hair black and he won't find out who I am—I never interacted with him much. Lucy will know it's me, though."_

"_What do you think you're talking about? You're not sending her in there alone!"_

"_I'll be nearby to provide assistance. We need Natsu. He's the only one who can lead us to victory."_

"_You're the leader right now! We can't risk losing you."_

"_I'll go."_

All eyes focus on one person in the room.

"_I went through puberty, too, and he's never seen me. I don't have anything to offer that will get me inside the castle, but I can accompany her to make sure everything goes smoothly."_

"_He will wonder how you escaped capture."_

"_They…didn't. They've just grown older since he brought them in and she's learned how to heal with herbs since then. It's been two years now, after all."_

"_I can't believe we're putting the fate of the world on two little runts. They're even smaller than her."_

"_Hey! I had a growth spurt!"_

"_It will be okay. I can do it."_

"_-don't do this!"_

Soft chocolate eyes meet hardened brown.

"_Trust me. We can succeed."_

The voice of reason is decisive.

"_They will prepare tonight and visit the castle tomorrow. She will offer up her services and it is likely Rogue will make her live inside the castle with her skills. He does not have any healers inside who will be as proficient as her."_

"_I still can't believe she's going alone."_

"_I still can't believe you're going to rest the fate of the world on two little runts!"_

"_It is nonnegotiable. Get ready."_

"_Fine."_

"_Whatever."_

"_If anything happens to her, I hold _you_ directly responsible."_

"_The winds of time are changing. Nothing will go wrong."_

"_I sure hope you're fucking right. This is going to be a bitch without a healer…"_

* * *

Lucy stared at her reflection in the mirror of her bathroom. Her eyes had purplish bags under them from how little she had slept the night before, tossing and turning in her bed at the prospect of giving herself to the king, her worst enemy.

The night previous had been the last straw. She wasn't going to go through with this life any longer.

Erza, Gray, Wendy, Gajeel, Carla, Happy, Levy…Fairy Tail…they were all dead. From what she'd seen of Natsu's state, he probably wasn't far off if such a short conversation was sending him to unconsciousness. She would soon be all alone, stuck in Rogue's grasp and turned into the worst kind of slave imaginable. She didn't want to live that life. She didn't…she couldn't.

The kitchen knife in her fingers was cold and heavy. It wasn't as long as she would have liked, but she wasn't going to be picky. The head cook had already given her a strange wayward glance when she had picked it up off the counter and told her to be quick if she was going to take it. The knowing look in his eyes hadn't been a figment of her imagination—he was sticking his neck out for her, but luckily no one else had seen her slip the knife into her underwear, the only form of pockets she could hope to create. It had created small lacerations in her upper thigh as she had walked quickly back to her room, but as long as the little cuts kept happening, she knew she hadn't dropped it.

She had just given Rogue his lunch and the look in his eyes had confirmed what would happen that night. Lucy was only doing what she could to preserve her honor, her dignity…what was left of her pitiful life.

She had heard of seppuku, the ritual of disemboweling oneself to commit suicide to preserve one's honor, and while the thought was frightening, she wanted to send a message to Rogue…and to perhaps anyone else who might undergo what she had after she was dead. She had kept hope up until now, but the violation, the defilement that was to come—she wasn't going to let it happen.

Taking a step back from the mirror, she decided she did not want to watch herself die. Walking back to her room, she knelt on her knees and began to pray, the knife laid prone in front of her.

"So it will be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown is dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. (1)"

Tears trickled down her cheeks as she recited the words from an ancient book she had perused in Rogue's library in her valuable and excessive free time.

"Let not your hearts be troubled," she whispered, a gasping hiccup wracking her body. "Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come and I will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going. (2)"

Whether or not she believed them, the words were comforting.

"They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. (3)"

It was then that the gravity of what she was about to do hit her. Her sobs increased in volume and she hunched over, clutching her stomach as though to prevent the coming pain. After a few moments, she reached over and grasped the knife with trembling fingers before pulling it fully into her hand and gripping it tightly. Her knuckles whitened with the strength of her grip and she forced her arm to go taut, not wanting to lose strength at a time like this.

With the weakness of her hands, she wasn't sure if she would be able to use enough force to perform the act, so she decided falling forward on it was the best way to go.

"I'm sorry, Natsu," she whispered, positioning the knife at her abdomen and preparing the fall.

Lucy took a deep breath and then, making her body limp, fell forward on the knife.

Fire spread through her abdomen and she gasped sharply, trying not to scream lest she alert someone who could save her. Tears of agony spilled from her eyes as she mouthed weakly. She could feel the pain in her shoulders, in her back, blooming in every inch of her body.

Then she felt warmth seeping past her fingers and she knew it was blood. The liquid was spreading quickly, staining the floor and her fingers. Shaking from the physical trauma of her actions, but also finding a sense of peace in the pain that she never would have expected, she forced the last words of her prayer past her lips.

"He will…wipe e-every tear…from…from their eyes…Th-there will be…be no more…death or m-mourning…or crying…or p-pain…" The words were nothing but whispers now.

"…for the old order of things has passed away…(4)"

Lucy Heartfilia closed her eyes.

* * *

_(1) 1 Corinthians 15:42-44_

_(2) John 14:1-4_

_(3) Revelation 12:11_

_(4) Revelation 21:4_

_Just so everyone knows, I'm not Christian by any means, but I felt the Bible verses strengthened the scene. Lucy, is not Christian, either. I've made it so that Rogue's library of forbidden works had a Bible (the ancient book) and in this story the Bible is considered fiction of sorts and not a religion. Lucy simply finds comfort from the words so she turned it into a prayer to say at the time of her death._

_Tell me if you want more! I'm thinking this story will be up to 20,000 words and however many chapters that involves. This chapter was short, but the others will be a similar length to the first. :)_

_Let me know!_


	3. To Say Hello

_Hey everyone! Installment #3 here!_

_Thank you to everyone who has reviewed. I hope you will continue to do so! :)_

* * *

**To Say Hello**

He was eager for that night; he had wanted her far too long, relishing the three times a day that she visited him with his meals. Sometimes he hadn't been able to resist touching her, to run his fingers through her silky hair or touch her soft skin when she leaned over to serve him. He had always found her gorgeous, starting the moment he'd first met her at the Grand Magic Games almost ten years ago now. Then, he had to hide her attraction since they were on opposing sides of the games and his guild at the time would have scorned him for the instant feeling of connection between them. The moment their eyes had met across the arena, the spark had jolted him.

It had been almost painful when he had attempted to kill her then, but he had made the gamble of the future Lucy saving her. He wasn't sure what he would have done if his shadow sword had actually pierced her beautiful body, but he was glad that his gamble hadn't resulted in her death.

He hadn't wanted _future_ Lucy. He wanted the genuine version, the one not already broken and jaded. He wanted the Lucy he had met before, the one who stared back at him confidently with her chocolate brown eyes full of fervor and confidence. He had noticed Dragneel standing so close to her and there had been an immediate surge of jealousy—to what purpose he wasn't sure, but now, he knew that he had always felt…_something_ for her.

It had initially been simple lust, but he had refrained from taking her the moment she was captured in order to let her adjust, perhaps become accustomed to his presence and perhaps warm up to him, if only a little. Natsu had been left alive to not fully break her, to keep him in her good graces to an extent. He knew if he killed the pink-haired dragon slayer she would never forgive him, so it was his secret gift to her to keep the boy alive.

He was starting to feel that the decision was backfiring on him. She hadn't responded to him at all yet, although he had had felt pride when he elicited a reluctant response to his touch from her. Whether she liked it or not, she did have _some _kind of attraction in return. She had to. However, he didn't want their consummation to be full of tears and pain for her—he suspected she was a virgin, which brought him a sort of male satisfaction that he would be the only one to have her, but he wanted the consummation of her becoming his queen to be as painless for her as possible. He didn't want her to hate him and he didn't want to push her away. She just had to accept that she belonged to him now; she had been his since he first set his eyes on her over a decade ago, although he hadn't known at the time that he would have the chance to possess her so fully.

It had occurred to him six months ago that his feelings for her went beyond lust. It was when he had started truly having to hold himself back from her, not wanting to force himself on her. He had bided his time, but the feelings only increased with time and the denial of his need for her had built an ache deep within him that he was no longer able to fight.

He had her cooperation now; even if it was a deal made from her reluctance from their last encounter, he would take what he could get. Even if she was responding only out of obligation, he knew that he could make her responses genuine—she had already proved that to him.

Rogue wanted to bring her to ecstasy until she was limp and boneless and had no energy to reciprocate any longer, till she was no longer able to say no to him and accepted their union.

He would prove their chemistry, their compatibility over and over again until she came to him when she was in need for anything. He would make her his queen and she would want for nothing. Eventually, she would forget Dragneel and become fully enveloped in…whatever it was he felt for her.

She would come to love him in time.

Just then, there was a knock on the front door to the throne room, where he was sitting comfortably contemplating his imminent future with Lucy.

"Come in," he called with irritation, wondering who would dare to interrupt him.

Two guards pushed the grand double door open and a tiny young woman—no, girl—with short black hair cropped to her shoulders and in pig tails entered, dressed in the rags that the majority of his subjects wore outside the castle. Her eyes were bowed to the ground submissively as she trailed after the guards.

When her foot suddenly caught on nothing and she tripped, but caught herself, something made him feel like he knew this girl, but he couldn't place her.

"Your Majesty," the guard on the left said as both of them bowed, "This is Melanie Wurst, a girl from town. She came to request to be your healer. She is proficient in medicine, or so she claims, and feels that she could be of service to you."

"I already have a healer," Rogue replied, annoyance tinging his tone. "Send her awa-"

Suddenly, he felt a prickling of his senses that halted his words immediately. It was the feeling that something was going terribly wrong and it started a dull ache in his chest.

Little did he know that down in the dungeons, Natsu had abruptly awoken to the similar but stronger feeling of his heart shattering and tears were already forming in his eyes as he felt Lucy's magic power start to fade. The dragon slayer knew exactly what had happened and there was nothing he could have done to stop it.

Rogue, too, felt the sudden waning of Lucy's magic power and he was filled with disbelief. The only thing that would cause the feeling was if she was dying—and there was no one who would dare attack her when his claim had been so thoroughly staked.

"Come with me," he demanded of the healer furiously. Who would dare to risk his wrath like this? They would not find death easily, that was certain. They would be punished within inches of their lives over and over again until he left them to be fed on _alive_ to the dragons.

The girl, Melanie, stiffened and nodded quickly, her brown eyes widening. Again, he felt as though he knew her, but the thought was ignored in favor of rushing towards Lucy's room, where her scent was leading him.

The scent was full of iron and he realized that it was the smell of her blood. His pace quickened to a near-run and he flung the door to her room open, only to find her slumped on the floor with her eyes closed and blood staining the stone in a puddle beneath her.

"Heal her!" he shouted at the Melanie girl and she rushed forward with hurried steps toward Lucy's pale, bloody form.

She was whispering so quietly in Lucy's ear that he couldn't hear her, but Lucy cracked open her eyes and looked up at the girl with something akin to awe and wonderment. Tears formed in her eyes and she let out a painful, choked sob and blood spurted from her mouth.

He was not used to the feeling constricting his chest, but it felt a lot like panic.

"Your Majesty, I have to use magic to heal her," Melanie said softly and he noticed that tears were gathered in her eyes. What kind of competent medic let themselves get emotional over a patient they had never met? How weak.

He ignored the implication that the little girl knew healing magic, but he figured that since she was so young, it was possible that she had developed it without his knowledge. He nodded curtly in acquiescence and Melanie turned Lucy on her back.

Rogue's heart felt like it had torn in half. A kitchen knife, about six inches long, protruded from her stomach, stuck in to almost the hilt. He could tell from its position that the damage would be extensive and it was a miracle she wasn't dead already.

His mouth was dry and there was a bitter taste on his tongue, even as Melanie raised her hands over Lucy's abdomen and blue-white light began to glow, mending his queen's wounds. Lucy was crying silently, tears noiselessly sliding down her cheeks as blood continued to trickle from her mouth.

Even as Lucy's pallor returned and the wound sealed itself, Rogue felt immense fury fill him. Whoever did this to her would have a long, agonized journey before death in the most brutal, painful, desecrating way possible. How dare they attack his queen? How _dare _they hurt Lucy, the only person who had meant anything to him since Frosch had died in the dragon attack all those years ago?

Eventually, Lucy's eyes closed and the tears stopped. He forced down the fear that filled him and approached Melanie furiously.

"If she is dead, you will suffer a worse fate," he ground out.

Melanie did not look up at him, her hand still glowing that heavenly color. "She is just resting, your Majesty. The wound has taken a great toll on her. She almost died, but she will survive."

Rogue exhaled sharply and turned to the guards who had tentatively followed and were watching in something like fascinated horror.

"Scour the kitchens. Find out who did this."

A thought niggled at the back of his head, but he ignored it.

"Your…Majesty," Melanie spoke up, and he glanced at her coldly. She had spoken out of turn, but he was willing to hear her out if it was related to Lucy's recovery. "The…the wound is self-inflicted." She elaborated without being asked. "If she had been stabbed, she most likely would have fallen back rather than forward. The depth of the wound tells me that it would require a lot of force…it's possible that she fell forward onto it. In the fabled samurai tales, it is called seppuku."

Something froze in his chest and its icy grip paralyzed him, the pain was so great.

They were supposed to consummate their union that night. Not even three hours before…Lucy had attempted to commit suicide.

And she would have succeeded if Melanie had not been readily available and he had not listened to his instincts that something was wrong.

Somewhere deep within the underground prison, Natsu gasped a breath of relief at the sudden lessening of the pain in his chest and happy tears fell from his eyes, replacing the ones of grief.

The icy feeling was replaced with white hot rage. He had given her chance to collect herself, to prepare, and instead she used that time to try and _escape_ him.

Permanently.

He stalked away and cornered the maid who was returning from the laundry room with his normal robes. She squeaked in surprise and then began to bow and apologize profusely. Rogue ignored her and demanded that she gather however many maids she would need to have Lucy moved to his room on the third floor.

Apparently he couldn't let Lucy out of his sight from now on. She was not to be trusted.

And this had proven that she would rather die than accept him. He detached wholly and fully from the inner turmoil and deep ache that the thought cause within him—if she wouldn't accept him of her own volition, he would force her to submit. If he had to carve the smile onto her face, he would. If he had to drug her so that she would respond to him the way he wanted, he would.

If he had to lock her in his room and never let her see the light of day again in order to keep her by his side, _he would_.

Rogue felt a fundamental part of his attraction for Lucy wither and die and he realized that it had been respect for her feelings, the need for her reciprocation.

At the vanishing of this emotion, he was left with nothing but obsession.

The moment Melanie pulled away from Lucy's body, Rogue all but shoved her out of the way and lifted Lucy into his arms. It felt so good to feel her body curled up against his chest; the way she limply rested her head against in a twisted semblance of affection made a part of him warm.

"You will clean this room after the other clear it of my queen's belongings," he ordered Melanie. She flinched for some reason, but he supposed it took people a while to accustom to his sharpness. "Then you will move into it." He didn't need a healer often, so this girl would also serve as a maid in her free time. He had no use for freeloaders in or outside the castle.

"Yes, your Majesty," Melanie said with a bow, but her eyes strayed to Lucy with concern.

He picked up the cue. "You will monitor her for however long it takes for her to recover. Expect to be on call often."

There was something like relief in Melanie's eyes and she nodded fervently. It was a realistic response, he supposed, but he didn't have much experience with healers. It made sense that Melanie would be worried about the survival of her patient after all she had done to save her.

"We will discuss your use of magic at length later," Rogue went on. Melanie stiffened but nodded obediently. Satisfied, he left the room with Lucy in his arms.

After the maids had arrived to change her clothing and clean her of her blood, he laid her on his bed and then held her close to him, being careful of her newly-healed wound. He caressed her blonde hair carefully, nuzzling his nose into her hair and inhaling her scent. He trailed kisses down her neck and stroked her hip softly, which made her moan softly and shift.

It didn't sound like a moan of arousal but rather of pain and he stopped his movement, clutching her tightly to his chest while avoiding her injury.

Rogue felt a contentedness he hadn't known he would ever be able to feel again, holding his queen in his arms and feeling her deep, steady breathing against his chest.

He fell asleep.

* * *

Wendy Marvell had been left alone in her new room, Lucy's old room as she had figured, and as she cleaned she cried tears of pain and relief.

Whatever Lucy must have been going through to take her own life, Wendy didn't want to know, but she would provide any kind of support she could to save the blonde from whatever fate she had been trying to avoid.

It had not passed her notice that Rogue had referred to Lucy as "my queen", and Wendy wondered if that had anything to do with why Lucy had tried to commit suicide. The fact that she wasn't living directly with Rogue said that perhaps it was a newer development and Wendy could understand, even if she did not approve, why Lucy would go to such an extent to evade that title.

Wendy was only fifteen now, but she had long understood what happened between married couples behind closed doors. Romeo, who was her backup in this perilous mission, had told her about it and it made perfect sense if Lucy had had that happen to her. The now-black haired girl knew that Lucy would never give herself to Rogue like that and so it was obvious that if it hadn't happened already, she would be…_raped_.

As a healer and with Lucy's grievous injury, she could buy Lucy some time before escaping the castle with her and Natsu. The good thing about Lucy's value to Rogue was that she was in the perfect position to get information from him.

Time was ticking by slowly as Wendy scrubbed the bloodstain from the stone flooring onto which it had leaked. The rug that had absorbed most of the blood had already been taken away, supposedly to be thrown out, but Wendy knew that fully erasing the evidence of Lucy's near-death attempt was important for her own sanity. To think that her friends were suffering so terribly in captivity—both Natsu and Lucy—made her sick to her stomach and she wished that they had mobilized sooner. Three years had been too long to wait to fight back, but the remaining members of Fairy Tail had been doing their best to gather information and train up for the impending fight against the six dragons they would be required to defeat.

While the king had gathered or destroyed the majority of the books that could have been implemented to destroy him, his belief that all but three mages other than himself had been killed had made him just sloppy enough to entrust them with a little bit of Dragon Slayer magic that Erza and Gray had been learning with her, Gajeel, and Levy's tutoring—Gajeel was the third living dragon slayer and the only purely-offensive dragon slayer outside captivity, and Levy was able to decipher the ancient texts and translate them for the two of their strongest warriors to learn. Erza excelled in Gajeel's strain of iron dragon slaying magic with her swords and Gray had had an affinity for the deceased Sting's white dragon slayer magic. Neither would ever be considered dragon slayers, but it would give them the advantage of being able to actually damage their opponents. With Wendy herself, Erza, Gray, Gajeel, Laxus, and Natsu all having dragon slaying powers, they had a chance at victory.

Wendy had often wondered what would come of the world once Rogue was defeated—there wasn't much left—but that was something the remainders of Fairy Tail hadn't discussed openly.

She hated to think that the lack of discussion was because no one knew exactly what to do with so many dead, but she knew that Erza, their leader, already had plans in her mind for what would happen next. Right now, they had to put all their efforts into defeating the current regime.

After that, everything would change. It would be hard to make any concrete plans ahead of time.

Sighing, the black-haired girl scrubbed her brush more vehemently into the stubborn stain.

* * *

_Where it had once been cold was now warm. Where it had once been dark, it was now light and colorful. Hatred had turned to love and vengeance had become forgiveness._

_Lucy wished she could just float in this bright, sunny, beautiful world forever, but something was tickling at the edges of the panorama of warmth. It was dark and malevolent, encroaching further and closer with every passing moment._

_The darkness was closing in on her and she wrapped her arms around herself, only to find them wrapping around a solid, warm body. Hair tickled her nose and she twitched in surprise before she noticed that the hair was pink._

_Natsu was holding her so close, so tenderly…it was just as she had always wanted._

"_Everything's going to be okay, Lucy," he whispered. "They're coming."_

_Tears trickled down her cheeks. _"Natsu…_what are you talking about?"_

"_They're alive. Our friends are alive. I can feel them…"_

"Natsu…please…_tell me what you mean. I saw them die. They can't be alive." She noticed that some of the words she was saying sounded louder than the others, as though they were echoing back at her._

"_Never underestimate the bonds of friendship and love," he murmured into her ear before placing a gentle kiss against her temple. She could feel his muscles rippling under her tight grasp as he held her just as tightly._

"_I don't understand!" she cried, crying harder into his shoulder as she gripped him closer to herself. However, now, instead of his broad, warm chest, the form she felt herself hugging was lithe, hard, and uncomfortable. _"Rogue…_has destroyed everything! The world is over because of him! There was so much destruction and death! All the people _I love_ were killed by _him…" _The words continued to echo strangely, but Lucy ignored it._

_She noticed now that Natsu's grip around her had tightened uncomfortably, still maintaining that unfamiliar hold on her. She wriggled._

"_You're hurting me, Natsu," she whimpered._

"I've always loved you as well,"_ Natsu said, but it wasn't his voice. It was a voice that sent chills down her spine. _"You'll always be mine."

_The arms around her were like an iron cage. She began to fight against them and she realized it was no longer Natsu holding her, but she couldn't see who the person was. Natsu was standing some distance away, not in the line of vision of the person wrapped around her tightly, only in hers._

"_Natsu! Don't leave me here!"_

_He kept retreating—or rather, she was being pulled away while he remained stationary._

"_I love you, Lucy." His voice was his own again. "Don't forget me."_

"_I'll never forget you! _I love you! I want to be with you forever…!"

_Natsu's lips were moving, but his voice was overrode by the cold voice of her captor. _"You will be. Forever. I promise."

_Cold lips were pressed over hers and Natsu was watching while she was kissed by another man. Eyes wide but unable to see who it was kissing her, she struggled and pulled away. _"Natsu! Stop _him! Please!"_

"Shh, shh, I'm not him," _came the voice. The unknown owner of the voice recaptured her lips forcefully and she violently shoved bodily away from him, only to have a punishing pain in her abdomen from the force of her push._

"Stop _him! No,_ Natsu!"

Lucy let out a sharp gasp of pain as she awoke, eyes shooting open in terror.

Rogue was watching her with something akin to wonderment, laying across from her on an unfortunately familiar bed. She felt a lingering wetness and tingle on her lips and she realized Rogue had been kissing her while she was unconscious.

The thought sent a jolt of something incredibly sickening through her body.

"What…?" she whispered. Why was she alive? There should be no way!

But then she remembered Wendy's eyes staring down at her, whispering that she was here to help and not to lose hope. There had been the blue-white glow of her healing magic and the pain had slowly faded, but then the next thing she knew was the encounter with Natsu and now this…

Rogue wasn't paying attention to her state of panic. "I knew you felt it," he said, stroking her cheek tenderly. Lucy flinched, confused at the warmth in his normally cold tone, but he crushed her into his chest but held her gently, as though trying to be careful of her near-fatal wound.

She had no idea what was going on, but when he spoke next, she came to a terrible realization.

"I always knew that you would love me back," Rogue murmured softly into her hair, stroking her bare back reverently.

What was he talking about…? Then it struck her.

Had the echoing words in her dream been her…talking in her sleep?

* * *

_Okay, so in case it wasn't clear enough, the words in Lucy's dream that were NOT italicized were spoken aloud. If you recall, Rogue was sleeping next to Lucy. The way I envisioned it is that he woke up when she started talking and has heard everything that was not italicized. So you can imagine the problems that would arise in such a situation..._

_Anyways, please review! I want your feedback! Who would you like her to ultimately end up with? I already have a general idea, but votes could sway the balance. :) Chapter Four will be up as soon as I can!_

_Cheers!_


	4. To Live Again

**To Live Again**

Lucy had no idea how to react to this unfortunate, impossible development. She simply let Rogue hold her close while she tried to figure out how she was going to handle this.

What on earth had she said to make him think that she could _ever_ love him—much less that she actually did? Hadn't her reluctance in the sexual activities he had forced her into given him any idea of how much she hated him? She wanted nothing to do with the man who had destroyed her home, her life, killed her friends…

All of a sudden, a thought came to her and it made her feel incredibly dirty. While she did not remember what she had said in her dream—it was all jumbled up with what she had actually been saying—she clearly recalled what the man in the dream, now known to be Rogue, had said.

'_I've always loved you as well.'_

He had a funny way of showing his 'love,' but Lucy decided to take a chance and believe what he had said while she was unconscious. She doubted he truly meant it, but she had been asleep, so perhaps there was a slight chance he had meant it.

Rogue claimed to love her.

If Lucy knew anything about love, it meant that he cared about her and might make exceptions for her that he wouldn't for other people.

She vaguely remembered hearing his voice threatening someone…no, Wendy…before she fell unconscious after her friend had healed her. If she was recalling the incident correctly, then he had told Wendy that if Lucy died, she did, too.

Lucy acutely felt like she was prostituting herself for whatever she planned to accomplish—she wasn't sure herself yet—but she knew that the best way to gain an advantage in a hopeless situation would be to capitalize on Rogue's feelings for her. It was horrible, it was wrong, it was the worst kind of manipulation…

Natsu's pale, emaciated form appeared in her mind's eye, his eye swollen shut undoubtedly from a beating.

The deaths of her friends; hearing Levy's screams as Atlas Flame scorched her with his flames; Erza fighting to the death against Levia, the giant finned dragon; Makarov's bloody death at the hands of the Jade dragon, Virconis.

Suddenly she didn't feel so bad anymore. Now she just had to find out how good of an actress she could be under pressure.

"Rogue…" she whispered, taking the chance that he wouldn't mind her calling him by his first name. When he didn't immediately snap at her, she went on, "It hurts…" The best thing about it was that it wasn't a total lie.

He pulled away and looked at her with scrutinizing eyes. "I'll call the healer," he said after a moment, watching her carefully.

Lucy had to make sure he was calling Wendy, not the old, decrepit old man they called the official healer of the castle. "The girl who saved me…what was her name?" Lucy didn't want to accidentally blow her cover and if Wendy had somehow gotten into the castle, Lucy doubted she was using her real name.

"Melanie," Rogue replied as he got off the bed. On a split instinct, Lucy grabbed his hand.

She didn't know how long she could keep up this act, so she'd better solidify it to the best of her ability.

He looked at her questioningly and she tugged him down. This was a risk. If she was too forward too quickly she might arouse suspicion, but the expression on Rogue's face when she had awoken hadn't given her any idea that he was unwilling to believe what she had inadvertently said in her sleep.

Steadying her nerves, she pulled him down while lifting herself up. When they were at eye level, she risked a quick peck on the cheek—she couldn't bring herself to kiss him on the lips, not after how he had taken advantage of her previously.

His eyes widened minutely as she pulled away, blushing. He probably thought she was embarrassed, but she was burning with shame at her actions.

Suddenly, his eyes hardened coldly and she wondered what she had done wrong. However, he said nothing and stalked away to get Wendy.

It was then that she realized her mistake—a _major_ mistake.

The reason she had been in the unconscious stupor that had 'revealed' to him her 'love' had been because she'd attempted suicide.

Only hours before she was to give herself to him.

Eyes widening, Lucy berated herself harshly. He _had_ to know she was manipulating him now! No wonder his eyes had gotten so cold—he probably thought she was trying to take advantage of his feelings!

Which she _was_…but she was going to have to come up with a valid excuse to make him believe that it hadn't been him to cause her suicide attempt but something else.

What would be believable enough to justify her attempt to kill herself?

She could still hear Rogue's footsteps and it was probably possible to reach him before he walked too far away. She stumbled out of bed to catch up to him but had underestimated the damage she'd done to herself, healed or not. She let out a pained cry and collapsed to the ground, barely catching herself with her hand as she clutched at the sore spot.

Immediately the footsteps became louder, obviously nearing her direction.

He opened the door hastily. "What the hell are you-"

She looked up at him with pleading, teary eyes and he was instantly at her side. No matter how he much he thought she was taking advantage of his feelings for her, it didn't stop him from making sure she was okay.

The thought made her feel vaguely sick to her stomach. She hoped she would be able to live with herself after this.

"I…wanted to talk…to you," she said slowly, trying to speak through the pain. She let out a sharp exhalation, her pain greater than she thought it would be after Wendy's magic.

"Don't strain yourself," he said, and his words weren't as cold as she imagined they would be.

"It wasn't…you," she gasped. "I didn't do it…because of…you."

He gave no reaction other than to lift her up onto the bed again. "Don't-" He inhaled sharply upon glancing at her abdomen and Lucy followed his gaze.

Blood was soaking into her clothing. No wonder it had hurt so much—she had reopened the wound.

"You fool!" he hissed angrily. In moments he had left her there and was presumably fetching Wendy.

Lucy just lay there, feeling the pain as tears gathered in her eyes. Why did she feel so bad about what she was doing? After all the damage he had done, the lives he had taken, and the fact that he would have been happy to force himself on her—why did she feel so badly for abusing his apparent love for her? She shouldn't, she really shouldn't, but nonetheless she did.

Curse her bleeding heart.

Not too long later, Wendy arrived with Rogue not far behind her. She gasped at the sight of her friend's blood and was immediately at her side.

"You weren't supposed to be moving so soon," Wendy reprimanded as she raised glowing hands to Lucy's abdomen.

Lucy only laughed softly, but her breath hitched as a lance of pain shot through her. If only Porlyusica could see the girl now—they were more alike than the pink-haired woman would ever admit.

Unfortunately, the elder woman was dead because of the man standing closely at her side, watching Wendy work with sharp, watchful eyes.

Not long after she started, Wendy stopped. "You're going to need to be cleaned up again," she said softly. "And this time, _no moving_."

Lucy smiled at her friend and the younger girl gave her a small, secretive smile back. Luckily, Rogue didn't notice the exchange.

"You'll clean her up," Rogue told Wendy after a moment. "The bath is that way." He pointed to a doorway to the left of his room, one that Lucy hadn't noticed before. Wendy nodded and Lucy was grateful that they were going to have a chance to be alone.

Then she remember Rogue's fascination with her and her body. She reddened in mortification that he would watching her bathing—but she couldn't object now that she had 'professed her love for him.'

Although there were probably some decent excuses she could come up with. Again, she would be putting her acting skills to the test.

"Go start the water," he commanded Wendy and the younger girl was quick to head to the bathroom, leaving the two of them alone. Lucy stiffened when he approached her with reprimanding eyes.

However, his tone was soft when he spoke, in contrast with the hard expression on his face. "Why did you do it, then?"

Lucy realized that he was picking up their previous conversation. "I didn't know," she started uncertainly, wishing she wasn't going to have to lie so thoroughly. "I didn't know…I thought it was going to be meaningless. That I would be some kind of toy…for you. I couldn't take it."

His eyes narrowed and Lucy wondered if she had said something wrong. "You think I would ever do that to _you?_ The woman I love?"

Lucy took in a deep breath, the blatant retelling of his feelings for her making a pit form in her stomach. She wasn't sure if the revulsion was toward herself or him.

"I didn't know…" It was all she could say. Unable to look him in the eye any longer, she averted her gaze to the open door where Wendy had started running the bath.

"You are an idiot," he said, but his tone wasn't angry or cold. He knelt down and began to stroke her hair softly, running his fingers through her blonde locks. She made sure not to flinch at the contact, forcing herself to be completely still.

"The bath is ready," Wendy called out after about five minutes. Rogue lifted Lucy up, cradling her in his arms before carrying her to the bathroom and setting her down gently.

"I'll have someone bring up new clothing," he told Lucy, all but ignoring Wendy. "Don't take too long."

Both of the girls nodded and then Rogue left, closing the door behind him.

There was silence for a long moment and then Lucy turned to her teammate with watery eyes. "How…how are you alive?"

Wendy's eyes were wet with tears, too. "You're lucky I am," she said sadly. "Why would you do something like that? Why…?"

Lucy began to sob softly. "He wants me to be with him. As his queen or something. And now-now, apparently, he loves me." Her voice lowered to an almost inaudible level. "He was going to rape me."

The black-haired girl's eyes widened. "We have a lot to talk about. But first, let's get you cleaned up."

Lucy nodded and lifted the hem of her black dress, pulling the garment over her head and tossing it carelessly on the floor. With Wendy's aid, she was lowered into the tub of steaming water. It felt amazing, the heat caressing her wonderfully.

Wendy grabbed a bar of soap and a wash cloth and slowly began to clean her friend.

"How are you alive?" Lucy asked after a moment. "Is…did anyone else survive?"

Wendy nodded and Lucy let out a cry of relief. She began to sob earnestly. "Who? Who is still alive?"

"Erza, Gajeel, Laxus, Levy, Romeo, Gray, Carla, Happy, Lily, Cana, and me. Everyone else…didn't make it."

Lucy sank deeper into the water and gave a harsh cry. Not even she herself knew if it was of grief or happiness.

After the blonde had calmed down a little, Wendy said, "Erza and Gray know some dragon slayer magic now. If we can free Natsu, then we can launch a counterattack against Rogue and defeat him and the dragons. We can free all those poor people."

Lucy didn't dare ask why they hadn't come for her sooner—logically, it made sense that if they even knew she was alive, they probably needed someone in the castle. Oh, but what she would have given to know they had survived. In the beginning, the grief had been so terrible that she had blocked it all out, and then when she was captured and brought to the castle, she had been overwhelmed with the loss of her friends. Now that she knew some of them were alive, she wasn't sure if it hurt more or not that she hadn't trusted their strength and ability to survive.

"I'll do whatever I can," Lucy said, determination filling her now that the initial shock of her friends' living status had worn off. "What do you need?"

"We need Natsu primarily," Wendy said. "You won't be able to help until you're healed, though. But if what you say about Rogue wanting you to be his queen, then you're in the best position to free Natsu."

"He'll never let me do that, no matter how important I am to him," Lucy replied uncertainly.

Wendy smirked and Lucy then realized just how much the younger girl had grown up. "Who said you're going to tell him about it? If anyone can get ahold of the key to the dungeon and the shackles, it's you."

Comprehension dawned and then Lucy stiffened. "I'm going to have to get _very_ close to him if I'm going to even start to talk about Natsu. I'll probably have to…" she trailed off.

Wendy frowned. "I can buy you time. At most, a month. You need to fully recuperate for anything like…_that_ and Rogue probably doesn't know enough about healing to not trust what I say. If I keep repeating healing sessions, you'll be healed much sooner, but if you can getting closer to him over that month, we can hopefully free Natsu without arousing his suspicion. By the time he notices Natsu is gone, I'll have to leave." Wendy's voice was sad. "But we'll come back for you. Trust me and trust Fairy Tail. We _will_ defeat Rogue before he does anything terrible to you."

Lucy nodded, a new strength in her eyes.

"I've been communicating with Romeo through a new technique that Erza was able to develop. Anything metal can transfer thoughts to a person if you're familiar with their magic power. I'll teach it to you—it's surprisingly simple. It's only one way and you have to connect to the other person before you can start a conversation, and even then it's only if the person knows the technique." Lucy's expression dropped when she realized she wouldn't be able to communicate with Natsu. Wendy went on regardless. "But don't worry—you can get in touch with everyone else, and if you're allowed to visit Natsu…maybe you can try to teach it to him?"

At that, Lucy smiled. "I will. Trust me, I will."

"It doesn't require much magic power at all, so I don't think you have to worry about Rogue finding out. I've been communicating with Romeo and nobody has noticed yet."

"Okay." By this point, Lucy was as clean as she was going to get. In order not to anger the king, she started to lift herself out of the tub with Wendy's assistance and soon after, there was a knock on the door that signaled the clothes were there. Wendy went to fetch them and then helped Lucy redress.

"Stay strong," the younger of the two whispered just before they exited the bathroom, where Rogue was waiting for them.

"She is well now?" Rogue asked, and Lucy couldn't help but notice the tinge of impatience in his voice.

"Yes, my king," Wendy replied demurely. "But her recovery isn't over. I will need to have more healing sessions with her over time, but the only way she will truly get better is rest and nutrition. Right now, she should only have broth until she can take solid foods."

Rogue nodded, sparing Lucy a glance. "Don't think I've forgotten about your ability to use magic," he said to Wendy. "We'll have a _very_ in-depth talk about that later. I will call on you."

Wendy nodded and Lucy had to commend the girl on how she wasn't cowed in the slightest at Rogue finding out about her magic. Lucy was certain that if there was any chance of Wendy being in danger by going to the castle, Erza wouldn't have allowed it, so she decided to put her full trust in her friends that they knew what they were doing.

Rogue came over to guide Lucy to the bed and help her onto it. She took a deep breath and forced herself to relax as Wendy left the room. After closing the door, the king came over and laid down next to her, holding her close. Tentatively, Lucy curled her arm around his waist as well, even though her stomach was in knots.

However, Rogue didn't notice her reluctance and simply held her closer. Not long after, Lucy fell asleep.

* * *

_Short chapter, sorry!_

_Reviews are love!_


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